Wear a mask if you’re 6ft from corona patient, dotctors told

DOCTORS, nurses and carers have been told to wear protective masks if they come within ft of anyone who could have coronavirus.

Ministers updated the guidelines on personal protective equipment yesterday following confusion over what kit was needed in different settings.

Health leaders welcomed the extra clarity and higher levels of protection but said ‘unacceptable’ equipment shortages meant doctors and nurses would still have to risk their lives.

The previous guidance told NHS staff to wear a surgical mask, gloves and goggles if they were within 3ft of a suspected virus patient. Care workers have also been told to wear masks when looking after the vulnerable, whether or not they have symptoms.

In intensive care wards or operating theatres, doctors and nurses should wear full personal protective equipment (PPE) including FFP3 respirator masks, which keep out all particles.

Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said it provided ‘additional clarity’. But the British Medical Association said there was not enough equipment, and called on the Government to repurpose manufacturing in the UK to produce masks, goggles and gowns.

Its chairman Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: ‘What fundamentally matters is that doctors and healthcare workers get the adequate and appropriate supplies of PPE on the frontline. Without these supplies there is continued unacceptable danger to the health and lives of healthcare workers and their patients.’

Some hospitals have turned to DIY stores on social media. One frontline NHS doctor said he spent £90 of his own money on ski goggles. The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: ‘We have now delivered 397million products of PPE over the past two weeks, including masks, alcohol hand rub and aprons.’